1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to location based wireless services, and more specifically, to location enabled applications for wireless mobile devices.
2. Background of Related Art
Most mobile station (cell phone) GPS implementations depend on network access to a ‘location server’ for base station almanac (BSA) data and/or computational support. The IP address, port and type of connection must be known to the mobile station in order for the mobile station software and GPS chipset to communicate with this location server. Many Tier 1 carriers pre-configure their devices with this information.
Most location based applications rely on the device being pre-configured by the carrier with the correct location server configuration information. If this configuration is incorrect or does not exist, location services are not available.
The location configuration is static and must be established in advance by the wireless carrier. Existing GPS capable phones cannot be reconfigured (except manually) to access a new location server. When TCS sells its location platform into a new carrier, it is not possible to turn on location services on devices that are already deployed.